[Pen/Pencil Review] Dallas Pen Show, FenCon, & Recovery
It’s Pen Post Monday and a full week past FenCon. Time to get all the stuff back on track. Which is more difficult when the dogs are simply extruding “Nap Vibes”…and I had some FenCon close out stuff to do – and laundry (there’s always laundry). Ah, the glamorous life of a writer/blogger…
I managed to make it to the Dallas Pen Show for a teensy amount of time. Just long enough to renew our subscription to Pen World Magazine – one of my all-time favorite magazines. Love this thing. I call it “pen porn”, because I always INTEND to read the articles. Though this issue I actually did because it had an article about Harlan Ellison and his collection. This just goes to show that no matter what thing you might be into – you are not alone. In fact, many writers have pen collections. Who knew?
I checked in with the fine folks from Paradise Pen Company. I’ve come up with a plan to finally add a Pilot Vanishing Point to my collection (I’ve only been wanting one for YEARS) and it looks like I’ll have the means put together in time for my Birthday Pilgrimage in February during ConDFW. Yay! Seriously, I’ve been wanting one of these for SO LONG – and haven’t justified the (not completely outrageous) price point until I managed to get the numbers to align. So THAT’s coming.
The fun bit, I was telling my pen buddy, Tim Black, about Brandon Lee (Modern Chocolatiers) and Ryan Krusac – who makes the most gorgeous hand-crafted fountain pens in a wide array of materials and themes. He’s got a Kraken pen that is just awesome – when I turned a corner and there they were again. I only get to see them at this show since they’re in Georgia. Hey, Atlanta folks? They’re your local guys, support them for me!
I was on limited budget this year – I bought Carmelized Chocolate Almonds from Brandon because he always has a ‘take my money’ option…and come on… pens and chocolate. And the nice lady holding down a Faber-Castell table got the rest of my money. I’ve not really tried out Faber-Castell and they had some good deals. I picked up the last green capped N’ice ballpoint pen – and a Perfect Pencil. I’ve seen them in some emails and ads…ended up buying one because it was SO affordable and I couldn’t say NO. You’ll be seeing these in more detail in the very near future.
So here we go… back in the saddle. I keep meaning to do more with the Dallas Pen Show folks but somehow haven’t pulled that trigger yet. I appreciate them so much for giving me the opportunity to get to know some vendors/artists that I would never have met before. We’ll see what happens in the future…
Now, back to the saddle. Need to put those pens to use. I have books and stories to write.
[Writing Post] All. The. Books.
Here it is, the Tex Thompson-Inspired Uber-Enthusiastic, post-FenCon post.
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! OMG, GUYS. THANK YOU SO MUCH! I don’t deserve you! You are SO AWESOME! THANK YOU!
FenCon is always a good time – considering I have to split my time between working with Guests of Honor and being a writer. My convention friends and family have always been super supportive. I’ve been part of this convention since its first year – first as a writer then as staff. FenCon is where I started dating Jimmy, met some of the most amazing writers, artists, musicians, and scientists (including an astronaut!).
HOWEVER, this year catapulted all those other experiences to the next level – including the campaign to have FenCon be the convention where Selina wore the Redheads of the Apocalypse Satan outfit when we “won the bet”.
YOU GUYS – you guys – you came to FenCon and bought all the copies of Tarbox Station Yard Dog Press brought – by early Saturday. Then you bought all the copies (except the one I carried around) I brought by Saturday afternoon. THEN you bought all the copies I WENT HOME TO GET on Saturday evening by end of the convention on Sunday.
Not only did you ask me to sign these books (most of them – I think), you also took them to Mitch Bentley to have HIM sign them too. Mitch actually brought one giant print-on-canvas of the Tarbox cover art to the convention. It’s now hanging on my wall – after nearly making me cry hanging in the art show.
Now I’m tearing up a little just remembering this experience because YOU GUYS – I alternate between ecstatically happy that you bought all the books and humbled because you bought all the books (and you followed directions and came to FenCon to buy books). Trust me… TRUST ME… I totally FELT THE LOVE.
[asa]B0121JTCDS[/asa]
I can’t tell you how much that all means to me – except that I hope you like the book – if you do, tell the universe. If you don’t, tell me so I can get better. And now I need to get back to work to give you guys more things to read.
At some near future point I’ll do a more inclusive convention report, but for now this is the thing most on my mind – and I had to get it out before I exploded.
[Writer Post] FenCon and News!
I have about an hour before load in for FenCon… let the stressing out begin. Oh wait, that was yesterday and this morning. I’m almost done with what I have to do before the Guests of Honor descend on us tomorrow – during which time I’m going to be very acquainted with my car as I make several trips to the airport. Looking forward to having all our special guests with us.
But that’s not all I have to do… I have a bunch of panels – my schedule is HERE – three of which are “performance based” (ie, IMPROV heavy). That’s not stressful at ALL. 😎 I hope to be coherent. That’s about all I can promise at this point.
[asa]1937105741[/asa]
So not only will I be promoting Tarbox Station – which is both new and exciting AND features a cover by FenCon’s Artist Guest of Honor… but I can announce I’ve got a new short story in an anthology from Wolfsinger Publications. The anthology is called Under a Dark Sign – and it’s co-edited by JA Campbell, a friend I made at last year’s FenCon. I promised her I would put together a story for her – I squeaked it in under the deadline (because I promised). I’m grateful that they liked the story I wrote – which ended up being an origin story (of sorts) to a character in another project I’m working on. It will be out at the end of October – you might see it if you’re at MileHiCon (if we all get our stuff done).
Come see all the hard working folks at FenCon. Come buy books. Come have fun. I’ll try to be somewhat coherent next week – but don’t count on it.
[Pen/Pencil Review] The PaperMate SharpWriter – 0.7mm
This is going to be quick and dirty because it’s FenCon week – and time is of the essence. This week we look at a classic mechanical pencil in fun colors – the PaperMate Sharpwriter. This pencil has been around for decades – I did try to find out how long, but couldn’t quite narrow that down. But I remember using these in school all those **mumblety mumblety** years ago. But this pencil is a classic – in fact I noticed Adam Savage using one of the standard yellow ones on one of the last episodes of Mythbusters.
The thing with the PaperMate Sharpwriter is that they’re cheap and disposable. You’re not supposed to refill them (though there seems to be a YouTube video showing you how). Intended to be used and abused, they’re not the most sturdy – especially the clip. I know I’ve snapped off more than – and so have the Mythbusters crew. Savage’s pencil had the clip snapped off right where the weak point is where the clip branches off the barrel.
These pencils come in a standard 0.7mm HB (#2) lead for use on any standardized test, experiment notebook, or page. The lead is extended through a ribbed twist mechanism. The SharpWriter is designed to have less breakage, but that could also be a function of size. The SharpWriters are about 6″ long and a bit on the narrow side. The white erasers are adequate but a touch on the hard side. They do the job but could dry out if they sit for any length of time.
The big thing about these are that they can be dirt, dirt cheap – especially during Back-to-School sales. In fact I picked up a 6-pack of “fashion color” SharpWriters with a “bonus” InkJoy retractable ball point pen on sale at Office Depot for $1. The box of a dozen at Office Depot runs $5.50 – so at the most you should be spending $1 or less per pencil – that way if they’re lost or broken or just wear out, you’re not out a lot of money. If you run the lead out – it’s all inexpensive plastic, I don’t see why you couldn’t recycle the barrels.
The numbers:
1. How does it work? – 1 It’s decent. The lead extends and retracts and does what pencils are supposed to do.
2. Grip and feel – 0.5 – This is no frills plastic retractable pencil. The mechanism is a twist mechanism that’s not fancy. The barrel is smooth with no grip or ergonomics and a little on the narrow side.
3. Material – 0.5 It’s a no frills plastic mechanical pencil. It’s not refillable. Meant to be disposable – probably recyclable. But likely it’s going to be ditched.
4. Overall Design – 1 – It’s an ages-old design. This thing has not changed in a very long time, except to add some colors. But if you like a pencil that’s going to work the same way EVERY TIME? This is it
5. Price Point – 1 – It’s cheap and readily available. This pencil routinely runs less than $1 each – MUCH less if you get a good sale. You can’t beat that if you’re hard on your writing instruments or don’t want to risk messing up a more expensive pencil.
4.0 out of 5 Bronze Pencils
[Writer Post] Twas The Week Before FenCon
Twas the week before FenCon when all through the house,
Every creature was panicking, including the mouse. (EEK!)
The boxes were stacked all high in back
In hopes the artists’ works were intact.
The welcome bags were lined up to be filled
With toys and snacks that did not need chilled.
Then I in my stress and Jimmy in his wisdom
Settled in to come up with some kind of system
To get through the next week sanity intact
Only to discover a deadline I lacked.
I tore open the files to find what I missed
Only to have to create a new list.
Then with a wink of the eye and flick of the pen
I went to work with a weird kind of zen.
Then one by one the days tick on by
With hopes that everything’s not done on the fly.
But as it is now, there’s stuff going crazy
And wondering if details will stop feeling hazy.
So onward to sleep with deeds being done,
Looking forward to next week and having some fun.
Yeah… so this is my blog post for today because I think my brain just broke a little. FenCon looms large on the horizon. A sort of final deadline for Redheads is JUST as looming with a veer off to figure out some panel stuff.
So enjoy the poetic “filk†of “Twas the Night Before Christmasâ€â€¦
[Pen/Pencil Review] Sakura Ballsign Knock Gel Pen – Brown Ink 0.04mm
Here we go. Pen review day. Woo hoo! I’m getting stuff done on schedule again! Today’s pen was from my last order from JetPens. This is a Sakura Ballsign Knock Gel Pen in a brown/black ink with a 0.04mm point.
This is an interesting little pen. It’s a slimline retractable gel pen but with a bow at the grip to make the grip diameter wider and easier to handle. The grip part of the barrel is tinted the ink color, but the rest of the barrel is transparent. The ink is smooth and rich in a long refill that makes the barrel seem to have an inner color match lining, but it’s actually the ink.
The plunger to the pen does have a color match lining with a slight ridge to the end cap. The retraction mechanism is solid. The clip is small but seems strong. I don’t foresee the clip snapping off unless you fiddle with it for an extensive amount of time. The pen runs just over 5.25†long both retracted and point extended.
The line is thin, obviously, it’s a 0.04mm – which I like – with a conical tip. The color is a nice tea brown. It works well on regular paper as well as the homemade journal paper I’m also currently using. It’s comfortable in the hand even without much in the terms of ergonomics. I foresee it working for quite a while.
The numbers:
1. How does it work? – 1 It’s decent. The ink refill is long and full – which indicates a long life. The tip and line are smooth and solid.
2. Grip and feel – 0.5 – This is no frills plastic retractable pen. The grip is slightly wider than the barrel but that’s all the nod to ergonomics it has. The barrel is slim, which might not appeal to some.
3. Material – 1 It’s a no frills plastic retractable pen, but it’s solidly built and cool looking plastic retractable pen.
4. Overall Design – 1 – It’s a cool looking, well-writing pen. With such a fine point, it’s sometimes difficult to get a solid line. This does very well. The clip, though small, is sturdy, and the mechanism solid.
5. Price Point – 0.5 – It’s a touch on the expensive side. These run $2.70 each and only available through an outlet like JetPens. They do come in a variety of colors and multipacks.
4.0 out of 5 Bronze Pencils
Review: Socks in The Frying Pan – Return of the Giant Sock Monsters from Outer Space – Cross Post
I owe Socks in the Frying Pan an apology. They sent me their new album, Return of the Giant Sock Monsters From Outer Space, a couple of months ago, and I’m just now getting around to talking about it. The trio consists of two brothers, Shane and Fiachra Hayes, and Aodán Coyne. And this album is both fun and beautiful. The delay in review has not come from anything to do with the album, but my own crazy busy schedule.
They, once more, mailed me the physical CD from Ireland, which was nice of them – I don’t get mail from overseas often. I love the cover art and the retro, kitchy, “B Creature Movie” theme. They continue the “tradition” of identifying the tunes as the kind of tune: jig, reel, song (vocals), even a waltz.
I always like the mix of instrumental and vocal with this band. The reels and jigs tend to be upbeat and high energy. This album immediately went on my playlists. It’s been part of my writing/working soundtrack. The songs have lovely woven harmonies to the melody in that traditional Celtic sound that’s both soothing and energetic, especially since you can hear the brogue in the vocals. There are traditional tunes mixed with originals…and they’re all what I’ve come to expect from these guys.
I do love “Spaceships and Frying Pan”, it’s a reel with hornpipes – but if it’s about spaceships? I’m all over that. They do an amazing cover of “Rollin’ in my Sweet Baby’s Arms”. “When I’m Gone” is haunting and slow with great beauty. They have two jig sets that are toe-tapping.
Unlike movie sequels, this second album is as good, if not better,
Artist: Socks in the Frying Pan Website
Buy Album: On the website or on Amazon.
[Pen/Pencil Review] Labor Day 2015 Edition
I’ve spent most of today reorganizing and cleaning out the Master Closet – we have another closet on the agenda. So I’m a bit wiped out by THAT. But in taking advantage of Labor Day sales, I’ve added to the stash of things to review over the next few weeks.
I think I’ve also come up with a plan to make a TRULY whirlwind appearance at the Dallas Pen Show on September 25th. I won’t be able to take anyone with me – because I’ll have to be the first one through the door at 10 am because I’ll have to be out of there at 11 am to be back at FenCon (at the new hotel farther away) by 11:30.
Until next week, here is a quick look at what I picked up this weekend that you will see reviewed – plus the stuff I picked up from JetPens.
We’ll have some fun in the next few weeks.
[Spotlight Post] Sending Names to Mars
Because I am a SF geek… Now, to send my name to PLUTO (it’s a PLANET darn it!)
[Writer Post] Hugos, Circuses, & Moving Forward
Wednesday almost got past me. But hey, it’s still getting done – because habit and commitment.
The Hugos/Sad Puppy kerfuffle is the This That Will Not DIE (Darn it!). I’m tired of it. There are people on both sides that I’ve had to back away from online (at the very least) no matter what I may have thought of them as people. I’ve tried to keep a “Switzerland†approach to the whole thing, because it really does need to DIE. But if you want some idea of how I feel about all of this? Go read this blog post by Mark Finn. I agree with him. And if you follow his advice, I can recommend a bunch of authors you’ve probably never heard of who produce good work you’ve probably never read. And if you want Small Presses to get better reputations in this world of “alternative publications†– read them, review them, and if you’re part of this…world…nominate them. As for me? I have no Monkeys. And certainly no circus. I may be “Circus Adjacent†but not my circus.
Now I’m moving on with my life (regardless of what other people are doing). I’ve sent edits back to the Redheads. I’m holding off doing my own fixes (of what I found in my own work) until I see their feedback – and make sure we’re all on the same page on what I think needs to be fixed. Until then, I’m taking another look at the partially finished Young Adult piece that will either be a novel or novella. Depending on how long the story goes. Then maybe diving into a paranormal romance. And whatever else gets inspired.
During all that, there’s Day Job stuff moving apace. I’ve been “nominated†for a committee which = “voluntoldâ€, but it could put me in a better position for new opportunities. Motivated Self Interest is a powerful thing. FenCon is at full Impulse about to jump to Warp Speed. For the most part, it’s all coming together. We have a few elements that have me chewing my nails, but they’re fairly minor as stressors go. That could change though…welcome to September! Yoikes and Away!